Ruto: We have struck Sh680bn green deals
President William Ruto delivers a speech during a plenary session at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, eastern France, on November 21. The President, who is in the United Arab Emirates for the COP28 conference, announced that Kenya has opened the door to a cascade of investment opportunities from different parties on the global stage.
As the climate summit gets under way in Dubai, it is a table of deals and pledges for Kenya.
President William Ruto on Saturday said Kenya secured $4.48 billion (Sh680 billion) in ground-breaking deals for green projects, some signed during the Africa Climate Summit in Nairobi in September.
The President also announced that Kenya has opened a door to a cascade of investment opportunities from different parties on the international arena.
For developing countries, these commitments for financial flows could be a lifeline.
At every climate summit, the clarion call from African leaders is that the continent’s adaptation and mitigation targets are ambitious but require urgent resource mobilisation and fulfilment of unmet commitments, a common outcome once the COP’s lights go out.
President Ruto spoke of the Africa Green Industrialisation Initiative (AGII) that is capitalising on the United Arab Emirates’ Clean Energy Pipeline.
The programme was launched during the Nairobi Africa Climate Summit.
“The initiative marks a concrete step towards the realisation of the Nairobi Declaration, activating private sector-led scaling up of green industrial clusters,” Dr Ruto told COP28 delegates in the United Arab Emirates.
He added that represented countries at COP28 have agreed that it’s not a question of “if”, but “when”, the international finance architecture is fit for purpose and serves the needs and nuances of the current situation.
“We have also agreed to have interventions that will give us new sources of revenue for climate action,” he said.
African presidents who attended the AGII launch and a showcase of pipeline green events echoed Dr Ruto’s remarks, terming the project the pathway for development.
“We are forging a green pathway for Africa. Through strategic collaboration with industrial and energy developers, we have set in motion a virtuous cycle, fostering economic growth and sustainable job creation” Senegalese President Macky Sall said.
COP28 President Designate, Sultan Al-Jaber, lauded the initiative as a chance to elevate the ambition of the clean energy programme, launched at the Africa Climate Summit.
“The UAE wants to support countries’ green industrialisation. We want populations in those countries to have access to high-quality jobs and opportunities. This is the spirit of green industrialisation,” Dr Jaber said, adding that the challenge Africa faces is not scarcity of resources but action.
Mr Mohamed Adow of Power Shift Africa, a Nairobi-based climate think-tank, warned against getting distracted by deals being announced at the summit.
“The announcements coming out of COP28 are largely to be welcomed,” he said on Saturday.
“It is good to see countries and companies taking voluntary action to cut emissions, boost renewables and deliver more climate finance, but we need to remember that COP28 is not a trade show and a press conference. It is a global negotiation. That is the most important part.”
Treasury Principal Secretary, Chris Kiptoo, said Kenya needs more than Sh7 trillion to adapt to and mitigate climate change between 2020 and 2030.
Dr Kiptoo added that Kenya would raise 13 per cent of the amount, with the balance being covered by developed nations.
“There is a huge gap between what we require and the resources available. That is why we are here. The bulk of the money comes as a mitigation not adaptation fund,” he said in Dubai.
“Mitigation comes as loans and not grants. I just came from Kenya where we had to release Sh7 billion to deal with floods. Before that, we had come out of a prolonged drought, the worst in 40 years. Climate change is a matter of urgency.”
